New London, CT

After stopping in Hartford, on our way from New Haven, CT to Providence, RI, I saw a place on the map called New London. It wasn’t a city we planned to visit, but intrigued by the name we decided to make a pit stop.

Unfortunately the town did not live up to the expectations, there was very little correlation with the England’s London: it was small, quiet, and very industrial. The town has a population of less than 30,000 people. Perhaps it was the time of day, Sunday afternoon, and the cold weather that kept people at homes.

But it was the perfect time to put up town’s Christmas tree.

We walked down State Street, which seemed to be most touristy, to the New London train station, and on to the City Pier. It was too cold for a swim session, so we just looked over the river to the other side.

A bit of history.

In 1646 New London was one of the first towns to be settled in Connecticut. It played an important role in the Revolutionary War and in 1781 most of it burned down during a fire in one of the battles. Eventually, in the early 19th century, the town made its wealth by becoming one of three busiest whaling ports in the world. With the town geographical location on the front lines of many past battles, there are many military installations.

Overall, it’s a cute little town to visit if you’re in the area, but not exciting enough, in my opinion, to stay in overnight.